1. Field of the Disclosure
The invention relates in general to a dispensing system, and more particularly, to a metered dispensing system which utilizes an integrated spout and valve coupled to a bag within a metering dispenser.
2. Background Art
The metered dispensing of different flowable materials in a repeatable and controllable manner is known in the art. For example, in the fast food industry, a preparer must often quickly and efficiently dispense a generally known quantity of a flowable material onto foodstuffs, such as, for example, sandwiches, tacos or salads, among others. While the dispensing of an improper amount may be of little consequence, even a slight over dispensing of a condiment can negatively affect the desired flavor. In addition, even a slight over dispensing over the millions and millions of cycles of the dispenser can add up to be quite costly.
In turn, various solutions have been developed to provide a metered dispensing of such flowable material in a controlled, and efficient manner. Many of such solutions require the pressing of a trigger which dispenses a predetermined quantity of the flowable material from within a holding chamber. The trigger can be repeatedly actuated to deliver the same quantity of flowable material until the dispenser has been emptied.
Problematically, such containers, while effectively delivering a desired dose of flowable material, nevertheless suffer drawbacks. For example, many of such devices include a plurality of components that are assembled to form the dispenser. Many of these components come into contact with the flowable material. This includes the housing, the seals, some of the actuator components and the valve. As such, from time to time, the dispenser is typically fully disassembled and thoroughly cleaned. Not only is such a process time consuming, but in many instances there can be problems or issues that arise from the disassembly and reassembly processes.